August Adviser

What would you do if a board member had ADHD?

A new school board member informed his board colleagues and the superintendent that he wanted accommodations for his diagnosed Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. They included: giving him special bullet notes and outlines of board documents; allowing frequent breaks during meetings and work sessions; assigning him a staff person to organize documents and help him keep track of meetings and appointments; and restricting meeting lengths to two hours. The other board members wanted to help but they thought some of the accommodations were unreasonable. What should they do?

	It's their responsibility to make accomodations for him.
	Tell him no, the accomodations are too disruptive and expensive.
	Consult with the board attorney about what to do.

Advice for the asking: Would you like to comment in more detail about this topic or are you plagued with your own prickly problem of school board service or school governance? Send a message to ASBJ’s cadre of consultants, known collectively as the Adviser. We’ll change the names of persons and places. Then, we’ll describe the problem and its suggested solution for our readers.

The Adviser does not represent official policy of the National School Boards Association; nor should it be construed as legal advice.